Multimedia

Audio

Scientists are keeping a close eye on the mating habits of microscopic organisms, including those that cause African sleeping sickness. They say what happens between two parasites can have major consequences for humans

Researcher Wendy Gibson said when it comes to single-cell parasites known as trypanosomes, sex matters. They had once been thought to reproduce by splitting in half. But scientists say they have a sex life.

“This is important because if they can mate, it means that they can swap genes around. For example, if you’ve got a strain of parasite that’s resistant to a drug and it mates with one that isn’t, then it can swap that gene into the one that’s sensitive to the drug. And then, of course, you’ve got a new parasite, effectively, that is also resistant to the drug. That’s dangerous,” she said.

Gibson is professor of protozoology at the University of Bristol.

“Sleeping sickness is a very nasty disease. It’s carried by tsetse flies in tropical Africa. And now, fortunately, the numbers, as recorded by the World Health Organization, have dropped to less than 10,000 recorded cases. But years ago it used to really devastate large populations,” she said.

She explained how the illness got its name.

“It’s called sleeping sickness because the parasite gets into the brain and causes people to go into a sort of semi-comatose state. So that they just appear to be sleeping all the time. And that stage of the disease you can only treat with some very unpleasant drugs. One of them is based on arsenic. So you can imagine that that doesn’t do you any good”

Sleeping sickness has been on the decline due to early diagnosis, thorough treatment and better control of the tsetse fly population. That’s good news. But Gibson said that a resurgence is always possible.

“A colleague once described sleeping sickness to me as the sleeping dragon. It never goes away because the problem is that there are animal reservoirs of the disease. So even if you haven’t got humans with the disease in an area, it may still be circulating in animals, for example, cattle or wild animals. And of course the tsetse fly is feeding on those in keeping that cycle of transmission going. And it may then, if you’re unlucky, transfer back into the human population,” she said.

Gibson said it’s important to understand sexual reproduction in microbes.

“It’s one of the reasons why we’re worried about the next influenza outbreak because influenza is caused by viruses, but they also recombine. OK, it’s not the same sexual reproduction process as we get in these parasites, but it’s the same intrinsic mechanism that you’ve got recombination of genes. And, of course, with flu, you get new recombinant strains. We don’t know how virulent they are and what kind of disease they’ll cause and how quickly they’ll spread.”

The study of mating microbes helps explain how diseases spread and how new strains are formed. That’s why what’s happening in Uganda is being closely watched.

“You’ve got in the north of the country the West African form of the disease and in the southeast you’ve got the East African form. The East African form has been spreading northwards. And one of the worries is that it will overlap with the West African form of the disease. Now, if those two parasites then mate together, obviously, we’re worried that they’ll create some sort of superbug that maybe cause more serious disease,” said Gibson.

Trypanosomes are part of a group of organisms known as protozoa. They also include microbes that cause such illnesses as leishmaniasis, which affects internal organs – giardiasis, an intestinal disorder – and trichomoniasis, which is a sexually transmitted disease.

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has told his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, that his country could face further consequences to what he called its “already strained economy” if Moscow does not fully comply with a cease-fire in Ukraine. The two met, on Monday, on the sidelines of a U.N. Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva, where Kerry outlined human rights violations in Russian-annexed Crimea and eastern Ukraine. VOA State Department correspondent Pam Dockins reports from Geneva.

Video

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has told his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, that his country could face further consequences to what he called its “already strained economy” if Moscow does not fully comply with a cease-fire in Ukraine. The two met, on Monday, on the sidelines of a U.N. Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva, where Kerry outlined human rights violations in Russian-annexed Crimea and eastern Ukraine. VOA State Department correspondent Pam Dockins reports from Geneva.

Video

Diagnosing infections such as HIV requires expensive clinical tests, making the procedure too costly for many poor patients or those living in remote areas. But a new technology called lab-on-a-chip may make the tests more accessible to many. VOA’s George Putic reports.

Video

Afghan officials have expressed concern over reports of a crackdown on Afghan refugees in Pakistan following the Peshawar school attack in December. Reports of mass arrests and police harassment coupled with fear of an uncertain future are making life difficult for a population that fled its homeland to escape war. VOA’s Ayesha Tanzeem reports from Islamabad.

Video

Despite the ongoing ceasefire in Ukraine, soldiers in the city of Mariupol fear that pro-Russian separatists may be getting ready to attack. The separatists must take or encircle the city if they wish to gain land access to Crimea, which was annexed by Russia early last year. But Ukrainian forces, many of them volunteers, say they are determined to defend it. Patrick Wells reports from Mariupol.

Video

As low oil prices and Western sanctions force Russia's economy into recession, thousands of Moscow restaurants are expected to close their doors. Restaurant owners face rents tied to foreign currency, while rising food prices mean Russians are spending less when they dine out. One entrepreneur in Moscow has started a dinner kit delivery service for those who want to cook at home to save money but not skimp on quality. VOA's Daniel Schearf reports.

Video

The United States and Cuba say they have made progress in the second round of talks on restoring diplomatic relations more than 50 years after breaking off ties. Delegations from both sides met in Washington on Friday to work on opening embassies in Havana and Washington and iron out key obstacles to historic change. VOA’s Mary Alice Salinas reports from the State Department.

Video

One after another, presumptive Republican presidential contenders auditioned for conservative support this week at the Conservative Political Action Conference held outside Washington. The rhetoric was tough as a large field of potential candidates tried to woo conservative support with red-meat attacks on President Barack Obama and Democrats in Congress. VOA Political Columnist Jim Malone takes a look.

Video

New Yorkers take pride in setting world trends — in fashion, the arts and fine dining. The city’s famous biannual Restaurant Week plays a significant role in a booming tourism industry that sustains 359,000 jobs and generates $61 billion in yearly revenue. VOA's Ramon Taylor reports.

Video

Issues like the Keystone XL pipeline, fracking and instability in the Middle East are driving debate in the U.S. about making America energy independent. Recently, the American Energy Innovation Council urged Congress and the White House to make expanded energy research a priority. One beneficiary of increased energy spending would be the Brookhaven National Lab, where clean, renewable, efficient energy is the goal. VOA's Bernard Shusman reports.

Video

There has been a surge of interest in the American civil rights movement of the 1950s and '60s, thanks in part to the Hollywood motion picture "Selma." Five decades later, communities in the South are embracing the dark chapters of their past with hopes of luring tourism dollars. VOA's Chris Simkins reports.

Video

With the end of summer in the Southern hemisphere, the Antarctic research season is over. Scientists from Northern Illinois University are back in their laboratory after a 3-month expedition on the Ross Ice Shelf, the world’s largest floating ice sheet. As VOA’s Rosanne Skirble reports, they hope to find clues to explain the dynamics of the rapidly melting ice and its impact on sea level rise.

Video

A Lao dam project on a section of the Mekong River is drawing opposition from local fishermen, international environmental groups and neighboring countries. VOA's Say Mony visited the region to investigate the concerns. Colin Lovett narrates.